1. Customer Retention Rate

Your customer retention rate is the percentage of customers who consistently order from your business over a predetermined period. Retaining customers significantly increases their overall lifetime value and reduces acquisition costs. The result is increased profits for your brand.

Satisfied, loyal customers also contribute heavily to better word-of-mouth marketing. By tracking customer retention rates, you can get a better idea of how many customers are staying with your brand. You can also see how that number changes over time, which makes it easier for you to spot customer service-related challenges that could negatively impact the customer experience. Comparing that number to other businesses in the meal delivery industry gives you a better idea of how your brand is performing.

DeliveryBizPro offers meal delivery e-commerce companies built-in subscription management tools that allow customers to customize their approach based on their unique needs. They can easily skip meals, adjust schedules, and adapt their meal delivery solutions to their specific needs. 

Actionable Tip:

Gather customer feedback and use it to identify and resolve pain points. Where are customers running into problems or roadblocks? By finding potential customer pain points and fixing them, you can keep customers with your brand, eager for their next delivery to arrive.

2. Average Order Value (AOV)

You may choose to track average order value across all your customers or break them down according to demographics, like household size, gender, or income level. Boosting AOV can significantly impact overall revenue without requiring you to bring in new customers. Not only that, a focus on boosting AOV can help you offer more to your customers, which increases your retention rate and customer satisfaction ratings. 

DeliveryBizPro makes it simpler to add value to individual customer orders. Our meal delivery e-commerce software offers upsell and cross-sell features during checkout, allowing customers to quickly see add-ons like desserts or beverages, encouraging them to make those additional purchases—including things they may not have considered when they started to put the order together.

In addition, we offer food delivery software with an analytics dashboard that can help you uncover bundling or price optimization opportunities. As a result, you can create offers customers are most likely to respond to based on their buying behavior, browsing, and more.

Actionable Tip: 

Promote bundles and time-sensitive offers to encourage larger orders. Fear of missing out is real, and customers are more likely to buy when they know you’re running a promotion that will benefit them.

3. On-Time Delivery Rate

Your on-time delivery rate covers the percentage of deliveries made on time. It helps you track the efficiency of your warehouses and shipping partners as well as identifying bottlenecks and challenges that could stand in your way. Freshness and punctuality are key success factors of meal delivery services. Without them, you may struggle to retain customers or experience considerable negative sentiment about your brand. 

DeliveryBizPro offers several solutions that can help you keep track of the essential timing of your deliveries. Not only does our delivery software for small businesses provide route optimization solutions that can ensure timely, efficient deliveries, we offer real-time tracking and alert notifications for both businesses and customers. That allows you to keep eyes on where deliveries are and ensures that customers are notified quickly about delays or other changes. Furthermore, delivery notifications let customers know precisely when their orders arrive so they can take steps to bring them in and put them away, ensuring freshness when they’re ready to eat. 

Actionable Tip:

Use mobile tools for drivers to streamline processes and address unforeseen delays swiftly. Those mobile apps keep everyone connected, delivering timely communication and improving customer satisfaction.

4. Order Fulfillment Accuracy

When it comes to customer satisfaction, order accuracy is key. Customers want to receive exactly what they ordered, with no random substitutions or items missing. While this is important for any business, it’s particularly critical for meal delivery services. Many customers will have allergies, food concerns, or even simple dietary preferences that can impact what they order. Failure to deliver on their expectations will decrease their trust in your brand and cause them to avoid future orders.

Order fulfillment accuracy is a critical measure of your brand’s ability to get the right products out the door and to your customers. Not only is it key for building and maintaining customer trust, it helps reduce your costs and time investments since you won’t have to spend time fixing errors. 

DeliveryBizPro steps up to improve your order fulfillment accuracy, too. We offer automated packing guides customized for your specific inventory and inventory tracking tools that can help you ensure correct stock levels. As a result, you won’t have to worry about not having items in stock when customers place their orders.

Actionable Tip:

Implement barcode scanning in your packing process. This simple step can significantly reduce the number of errors you see when packing customer orders.

5. Profit Margin Per Order

Your profit margin per order is the total profit earned after deducting all costs for each order, including the cost of food, prep, and employee time. Profit margins can change dramatically over time, especially if there are significant changes in the economy or your food acquisition costs. Understanding profit margins helps you make smarter pricing and cost-control decisions. You want to deliver value to your customers so that they keep coming to your brand while still maintaining a steady profit, and tracking profit margin per order helps you accomplish that goal.

DeliveryBizPro, as an integrated subscription ERP and e-commerce platform, can be a key part of helping you maintain those essential profits. We provide cost-reduction solutions through automated workflows, route efficiencies, and consolidated operations, all of which helps improve your total profit margin per order. In addition, we provide tools to analyze costs and streamline workflows to improve profit margins. 

Actionable Tip:

Regularly audit supplier and delivery expenses for optimization opportunities. In many cases, you’ll find that a simple look over those expenses will provide you with insights into where and how you can cut costs. 

See Your Meal Delivery E-Commerce Business Grow With These KPIs

Tracking the right KPIs is essential when you’re seeking long-term success in the meal delivery industry. You need to stay on top of profit margins, track accuracy, ensure a high degree of customer satisfaction, and look for ways to increase customer lifetime value, including upselling them—and these KPIs allow you to do exactly that.

With DeliveryBizPro, you can feel confident in the data you collect and the outcomes you’re seeking. We provide a wide range of solutions, from data collection tools to more efficient workflows, mobile tools for delivery drivers, and more. Are you ready to learn more? Schedule a demonstration today to discover how DeliveryBizPro can help you achieve your goals.

The post Meal Delivery E-commerce: 5 KPIs To Track for Long-Term Growth appeared first on Delivery Biz Pro - The Premier Home Delivery Software for Your Business Needs.

DeliveryBizPro is a purpose-built subscription delivery platform serving many specialty grocers today. It gives boutique grocers the right tools to transform their business. With customizable subscription features, automated marketing tools, self-service platforms for customers, and analytical reports to help you grow, you can turn your passion into a profitable venture that customers will return to again and again!

The Subscription Model Advantage for Boutique Grocers

Why Subscriptions Work

Food subscription boxes became a hit during the pandemic because shopping at the local grocery store was less convenient than it used to be. Since then, specialty grocers have taken the subscription business model and given consumers more reasons than ever to buy their food online. Consumers have become accustomed to having more convenience and consistency when shopping online. In fact, they have developed lifestyles that value and demand the specialty food services that boutique grocers offer. 

Being able to choose a custom food subscription box that will be delivered to the home allows consumers to bring focus to their diet, spend less time at the grocery store, and easily plan and prepare foods with expert help from the grocer who sends them the fresh ingredients they need. This combination of convenience and savings makes the subscription model an attractive option for busy, health-conscious consumers.

Key Benefits for Grocers

Growing your boutique grocery business through a subscription service has its advantages. See how it can give you more ways to reach consumers and keep them loyal to your business.

Customer Convenience

First of all, a subscription delivery business model serves your customers better. If you already have customers who swear by your products, they are going to love the convenience of being able to get your food delivered to them on a weekly or monthly basis. A subscription-based business model like DeliveryBizPro meets your customers’ needs effortlessly, so they can spend less time choosing and obtaining their food and more time on the things that matter most.

Predictable Revenue

Loyal customers who sign up for subscriptions are a boutique grocer’s dream come true. If your customers are planning on getting regular deliveries from you, then you can plan on getting regular income from them. Recurring income streams provide the financial stability you need to grow your business now and in the long term.

Improved Customer Loyalty

As you deliver healthy food subscription boxes to your customers time after time, you are going to become a routine part of their lives. Not only are you building customer loyalty, but you are also reducing the number of customers who stop buying from you. If reducing customer churn is one of your goals, think seriously about the subscription service model.

Additional Revenue Opportunities

As you continue to meet your customers’ specialty food needs, you can also provide curated recommendations for them. This is an excellent way to promote new or seasonal products, and your customers will appreciate finding new ways to enjoy your products.

How Profitable is a Subscription Box Business?

Subscription box businesses have taken off over the past few years, and they remain popular among the younger crowd, specifically millennials and Gen Z. Although the upfront costs of the packaging and inventory may seem like a lot, consumers are typically willing to pay more for the convenience of a subscription service than they would pay at the local grocery store. With data-driven analytics and automated marketing, your boutique grocery could take in profits of 30-50 percent. 

DeliveryBizPro’s Tools To Power Your Subscription Program

It is likely that you already have a website and an eCommerce store, but do you have the right tools to make a subscription service possible? DeliveryBizPro puts together everything you need, making everything easy to use so you can deliver subscription food boxes and keep growing your business year after year.

Custom Subscription Features

We understand that not all subscription box services require the same tools. Some grocers will need tools that allow customers to set up recurring orders of their favorite products. Others will need subscribe-and-save options. DeliveryBizPro offers flexible features that allow you to create the ideal customer experience. 

For example, you could offer curated produce boxes, monthly gourmet staples, tailored boxes of natural foods, or themed boxes that allow customers to try new and unique products. Give customers the option to bundle their subscriptions for a discount, change the frequency of their delivery, or swap one ingredient for another. We give you the power to make subscription food services easy and enjoyable.

Automated Marketing Tools

Keep customers engaged with built-in marketing features that require no additional effort on your part. Our automated marketing tools include drip campaigns, delivery reminders, personalized product recommendations, and thank-you notes. You can stay connected with your loyal customers and retain new customers with the personalized CRM features included with DeliveryBizPro.

Customer Experience Enhancements

Give your customers the subscription box delivery service they want with an easy-to-use self-service platform. Your customers can quickly modify their order, pause their subscription service, or cancel one week of subscription delivery. Recurring orders are simple to set up during the checkout experience.

You can make the online experience even more engaging by integrating product recommendations, recipes, producer stories, and more.  

Data-Driven Insights

Utilize built-in analytics dashboards to refine your offerings and track subscription trends. You will receive clear metrics on important aspects of your business, such as retention rates, which products are most popular, and where you have an opportunity to upsell a product.

Check Out the Possibilities

Let’s say you are a boutique grocer launching a seasonal produce box subscription. Your customers have signed up using your DeliveryBizPro online platform, selecting from a number of produce box options, such as organic vegetables, fall fruits, and holiday citrus. They can choose whether they want produce for two people or a four-person family. Your customized DeliveryBizPro tools also allow them to subscribe to a full year of seasonal produce boxes, which will save them money in the long run. 

Before they complete their order, they will receive a personalized recommendation for add-ons that they may want to check out. After they have completed their order and received their delivery, they will receive an emailed thank-you note from your store, which helps the customer remember your name and encourages a repeat order in the future.

In short, DeliveryBizPro puts the power to succeed in your hands. From your launch to years down the road, we cover the unique subscription needs of a specialty grocer.

How To Build a Successful Subscription Model

Here are some actionable tips to get you started with a successful subscription model:

• Start with a focused offering
  Instead of putting all your products into a subscription right away, try out the business model with a small selection of popular products first.
• Prioritize flexibility
  Give customers the ability to customize their subscriptions as much as possible and allow them to pause their subscriptions as needed.
• Reward commitment
  Increase customer loyalty with incentives like free delivery or exclusive discounts for longtime subscribers.
• Tell a story
  Consumers love to relate with the people behind the products they are buying, so use good storytelling to highlight your supplier partnerships, share recipes, or showcase sustainability efforts.

Common Pitfalls To Avoid

As you launch your new subscription business model, avoid common pitfalls, such as:

• Overcomplicating your subscription options
• Making the self-service customer platform difficult to use
• Forgetting to send personalized follow-ups or using other customer retention strategies

DeliveryBizPro helps you get your subscription service off to a great start so you can focus on giving your customers exactly what they want!

The Future of Boutique Grocery Success

Standing out in the competitive grocery marketplace is going to take some work. Whether you work in an area that is already flooded with boutique grocers or you have to compete with a big-name grocery store, you need to find a way to attract and retain the customers who will keep you in business.

Thankfully, DeliveryBizPro is here to help. We are your ultimate partner for scaling your subscription delivery services and creating amazing customer experiences. As one of the best websites for powering successful boutique grocery subscription services all over the country, we can see that subscription services are the future of specialty grocery stores.

Learn more about our subscription-based business model for boutique grocers by contacting us. If you think DeliveryBizPro sounds intriguing and worth a closer look, schedule a demo so you can explore the tools available to you.

As a growing boutique grocer, you can build real connections with the customers who want the quality food that you are selling. Your people are out there, and you can reach them through a subscription model that builds loyalty through great customer experiences, custom tools, and automated marketing. Get started right now, and watch your store thrive!

The post How Subscription Models Build Loyalty for Boutique Grocers appeared first on Delivery Biz Pro - The Premier Home Delivery Software for Your Business Needs.

Still, economics and public perception trends can shift at any time. This can either lead more consumers to farm-to-table delivery as an option for fresh, quality groceries or drive them away.

Public Opinion Can Shift in an Instant

Consider, for example, the massive chicken egg crisis that began in 2022 and continues through March 2025. Families faced with purchasing eggs at exorbitant prices will seek other options. They may be happier to pay premium prices for a guaranteed supply of locally grown, higher-quality eggs from humanely farmed chickens.

And, if convenient farm-to-table delivery is available, that’s one more reason to skip a trip to the giant corporate grocery and big box stores, which primarily lured these families with affordability.

Once attracted to better eggs, the next step is introducing them to other popular ingredients or produce. 

Increasing Opportunities Lead to Increasing Competition

The good news is that opportunities for farm-to-table delivery programs are growing. The not-so-good news is that these opportunities create competition from every angle. From the new backyard egg farmer selling eggs to her neighborhood watch members on Facebook to factory farms and “big meat” rebranding with “natural” subsidiaries or partner farms, competition looms. For farm-to-table producers, these competitors threaten profit margins, diminish community goodwill, and inconvenience retention efforts.

As a result, it is critical that farmers, co-ops and community CSA programs stay ahead of these trends. Focus on new customer acquisition today and customer retention tomorrow. 

Key Trends Shaping Farm-to-Table Delivery

At DeliveryBizPro (DBP), we understand that modern, educated, discerning farm-to-table consumers demand a customizable shopping experience. Our food delivery software programs empower farmers to thrive, attracting new business and servicing current clientele. 

We also understand the key farm-to-table delivery trends cropping up every season. From transparency and sustainability to the challenges of software sprawl, keep reading to learn about key farm-to-table trends.

Sustainability & Transparency Continue to Grow as Core Values

In 2023, McKinsey and NeilsonIQ completed an extensive study to understand the importance of sustainability to US consumers.

Their research shows:

• 78% of consumers claim a sustainable lifestyle is important to them.
• This is an 18% growth above 2020 results.

Getting granular, products marketed with environmental, social, and governance (ESG)- related claims saw 1.7% more sales growth than products made without these claims. Food items made the largest gains, with sweet snacks and yogurts among the best performers.

Today, your customers expect complete transparency in food sourcing. They wish to understand the environmental impact of their foods and the packaging in which they arrive. They actively seek eco-friendly products, packaging, and restaurant dining experiences. Climate change remains a major concern.

Keep Up With This Trend & Make It Marketable

At DBP, we recognize these core values and can help farm-to-table providers stay on top of this trend. For instance, we can help your organization streamline delivery routes to cut costs using less fuel, while saving delivery driver and packaging time.

Our farm-to-table food delivery software can also help you protect reusable resources, like crates and glass bottles, with deposit fee tracking. Once these solutions are in place, they make excellent content for your social media marketing. Ensure your consumers know how much you value their beliefs and the steps you take to honor their wishes for clean, green foods. 

Next, consider the importance of convenience for your farm-to-table customer base.

Convenience Matters

US consumer shopping habits have changed a lot since the 2020 pandemic. Grocery and food delivery apps abound, and your customers crave a seamless purchasing experience, similar to what they would experience with e-commerce giants and big box stores. 

Farm-to-table delivery customers are looking for:

• Practical, convenient delivery options, like doorstep delivery using their preferred shipper, and pick-up/will-call options.
• Flexible subscription options, which can be changed, paused, or canceled with a few clicks.
• Convenient tech, like cell phone apps.

DeliveryBizPro’s mobile-friendly interface makes all these options available for your customers. Whether they need to pause a subscription, double their order, or change a delivery address, they can accomplish everything in moments from their cell phone, tablet, or laptop.

This nicely leads to our next point: food subscriptions are becoming incredibly popular.

Food Delivery Subscriptions Are Taking Center Stage

Food subscription models are popular because customers appreciate the ease and reliability of the ordering process. As promised, food arrives fresh and on time, often with simple menus and basic preparation instructions. 

These subscription models offer increased revenue and endless branding opportunities for farm-to-table operations. 

Staying on Top of This Trend

Farm-to-table and CSA farm delivery operations can leverage their food subscription services by:

• Making re-orders very simple, “order now” one-click options are great.
• Automating subscription billing and order management with tools like DeliveryBizPro.
• Encouraging loyalty through incentives and discounts.
• Providing perks and exclusive products for long-term subscribers.

Free product samples are another excellent use of your farm-to-table delivery subscription software. Organizations can find customers for a product before it expires by introducing new items to their client base. Think of it this way: If they ordered your goat milk cheese, maybe you can get them hooked on your yogurt product. The ability to select free samples and trial sizes could generate a lot of new sales.

This segues into our next section, modern technology as a game-changer.

Technology is a Game-Changer and No Longer Monopolized by Big Box Food

Small businesses, family farms, community co-op farms, and CSAs no longer rely on roadside stands to generate sales and build their brands. Drag-and-drop website design services abound. Social media is free to launch and relatively affordable to use for growing your reach as a farm-to-table food delivery provider. 

However, all this tech does come with a few downfalls, like software sprawl.

What is Software Sprawl?

Software sprawl usually exists when two things happen:

1. Current software expands, and users don’t take full advantage of services.
2. Additional software items are purchased, sometimes repeatedly, by individual departments to fulfill their needs.

Many farm-to-table delivery businesses find themselves buying software for points like:

• Bookkeeping and tax prep 
• Customer data analysis
• Route management
• Marketing management
• Email & SMS marketing

Fees add up. Data is compiled on disconnected platforms, and your team needs to run X operations on various machines and fight their way through a disjointed process. Software sprawl becomes a triple threat as your organization pays for more software, more labor hours to learn it, and more time integrating these tools.

Instead, know all these things can be handled using a single integrated ERP, logistics, and e-commoerce program by DBP. 

Tackle This Challenge With DeliveryBizPro

With our specialized, unique approach to subscription shopping & regional routing, you can say goodbye to clunky shopping experiences and pesky phone orders. Your customers will enjoy a familiar and intuitive marketplace designed to showcase how your fresh foods can be delivered to their doorsteps. Our proprietary routing automation makes growing your delivery reach easy, so you can spend more time outside in the sunshine.

Plus, no hidden add-ons or extra fees are sneaking up. Your farm-to-table delivery business functionality is native to DBP, so you won’t need 10 more integrations and plug-ins to run your business. Customer service has become easier than ever, which is one important way to build brand loyalty.

Fostering Customer Loyalty

You’re likely aware that new customer acquisition is far more expensive than retention marketing. Forbes.com suggests it costs five to seven times more to attract a new customer than to market to an existing one.  In the long run, keeping your current clients utterly satisfied is the best way to evade those looming Facebook farm sellers and big-box organizations.

Since we’re talking about fresh food products, farm-to-table delivery services must actively pursue and build valuable customer loyalty. Let’s face it: Order errors happen. A piece of fruit arrives bruised. An order doesn’t arrive on time during the holidays, thanks to a winter storm. We’ve seen it all at DBP. 

Tactics for Building Loyalty in 2025

Food is a very personal experience. Your customers want to buy their food from a brand they trust, and they will often understand a minor mishap if they get enough attention in a customer service setting.

You can build brand loyalty by:

• Providing outstanding customer service when things go awry. Leave the customer thrilled with their experience, not merely satisfied.
• Following up on orders re-shipped, using a human touch.
• Creating a community around your brand (think social media, shared menus, customer recipe videos).
• Offering seamless, user-friendly shopping experiences.
• Continuously marketing efforts toward sustainability.
• Offering deep discounts for repeat orders.

We can help you accomplish that with one food delivery software program. For farm-to-fork businesses and CSAs, DBP makes shopping easy. And when the inevitable hiccup happens—thanks to bad weather and road closures, for instance—our software makes customer service fast and easy, too. From the initial contact to re-order and follow-up, we make the constant contact and human touch easy for you.

Now that your individual customers are beyond satisfied, let’s explore wholesale expansion as a key trend in the farm-to-table industry.

Wholesale Expansion Is Your Next Level

Farm-to-Restaurant-Table

In 2025, small US farms are expected to provide 35% of the ingredients used by domestic restaurants, up 12% from 2020. Therefore, it’s time to start building a relationship with at least one local restaurant or chain.

According to USDA Economic Research, which is run by the Department of Agriculture, even more wholesale opportunities are opening up for small farm operations.

Farm-to-Grocer

Major supermarket chains have come to respect consumers’ choices for fresh, wholesome, locally grown foods with few ingredients. And, while wholesale deals often run very thin profit margins, they are an excellent way to increase your reach to new customers with minimal marketing investments. Wholesale opportunities with a grocer are ideal if you’re hoping to scale up this year because those ongoing bulk purchases can provide ongoing, instant capital.

Farm-to-Institution

Finally, don’t forget to approach local institutions with your product.

We’re talking about:

• Schools
• Hospitals
• Churches
• Non-profit organizations
• And corrections institutions

A few major clients in these arenas can generate tremendous sales and excellent social media marketing opportunities. Some have grants available for purchasing fresh, healthy foods from local sources, and you can even do the research for them. Imagine how thrilled your local church, magnet school, or homeless shelter will be when they discover you can provide them with freshly farmed local foods at no cost. And imagine the “likes” and “shares” on social media when your brand delivers these foods to people who need them most.

If the idea of wholesale deliveries is intimidating, DBP can help. Our farm software is designed to help you manage B2B orders with ease, plus digital invoicing and membership pricing. Go ahead, take the plunge!

Final Thoughts on Farm-to-Table Delivery

With everything happening on the world stage in 2025, this will be a banner year for small farm operations, farm-to-table delivery services, and CSA farm delivery programs. 

Your farm business might have started with whimsy, but it’s time to level up by staying on top of key trends in the farm-to-table category. Pay attention to current consumer thoughts on sustainability and climate, and mirror them. Ensure your customers can enjoy a streamlined, smooth ordering process and try to limit software sprawl.

DeliveryBizPro is proud to stand beside you during this epic year. We’re ready to help you centralize and streamline your farm-to-table operations, grow your business, and scale with wholesale suppliers. 

We invite you to explore DBP with a free demo to see how we can simplify and transform your business for tomorrow. 

Related Reading & Resources:

OrganicConsumers.org: Boycott Big Meat

Agritecture.com: Understanding the Farm-to-Table Movement: A Comprehensive Guide for Developers, Architects, Designers and Hospitality Professionals

Adv-bio.com: Post-Pandemic Consumer Grocery Trends

Forbes.com: Stepping Safely Through the Software Sprawl

The post Farm-to-Table Delivery in a Dynamic Macroeconomic Landscape appeared first on Delivery Biz Pro - The Premier Home Delivery Software for Your Business Needs.

Encompasses all retailers that provide fresh produce, dairy items, meats, pantry essentials, meal kits, prepared dishes, gourmet options, organic and specialty foods, along with beverages like soft drinks, juices, and alcoholic drinks.

• Revenue in 2024: US$9.13tn
• AGR 2024-2028: 6.58%

Top Brands: Walmart, Amazon/Wholefoods, Hellofresh, Kroger, Safeway

The e-commerce sector for the food industry is poised for sustained growth. Unlike many other goods, food maintains a steady demand due to its fundamental necessity for life. Recent data indicates that the volume is projected to reach 3,011.00 billion kg by 2028, with an anticipated growth rate of 3.9% in 2025.

Multiple factors are driving the continued expansion of e-commerce in the food sector. The ease of online grocery shopping enables consumers to conveniently purchase their essential items from home, a feature that is increasingly attractive in today’s fast-paced environment where time-saving solutions are prioritized.

Additionally, the cross-border trade of food is at an all-time high as businesses seek to expand their revenue in international markets. However, the globalization of food supply chains also introduces risks related to food safety and quality, complicating traceability and management.

Economic growth and rising populations are leading to increased food consumption, while an expanding middle class is demanding higher quality and more diverse options. Enhanced purchasing power has resulted in a notable rise in the consumption of resource-intensive protein products, affecting both the environment and agricultural practices.

With innovations ranging from personalized shopping experiences to improved delivery systems, the e-commerce food industry is continually adapting to fulfill consumer needs.

Food Delivery

For centuries, food ordering and delivery services have been a staple of life. Initially, butchers, groceries, and restaurants would receive paper orders, and then by phone or fax, but today, we have online marketplaces that offer instant delivery options.

Major players in the food delivery sector, such as Grubhub, DoorDash, Uber Eats, and Zomato, have established strong networks that dominate the online landscape. The sheer convenience of ordering your favorite meals online and having them delivered within minutes has fundamentally transformed the industry.

The online food delivery market is projected to reach an impressive $200 billion in revenue by 2025, indicating that it still has plenty of potential for growth. Given the rapid expansion of this sector, it’s clear that food delivery deserves recognition as one of the top five e-commerce industries.

Grocery

According to eMarketer, offline grocery sales remain significantly higher than those in any other major e-commerce category. While the majority of grocery transactions still take place in physical stores, the steady increase in online sales is expected to inject billions into the e-commerce sector in the upcoming years. This growth is mainly fueled by essential items like food, beverages, personal care products, and household goods. By 2026, this trend is likely to position the grocery category as the leader among the four primary e-commerce segments.

As reported in Brick Meets Click’s U.S. Grocery Sales Forecast, grocery e-commerce sales are anticipated to experience a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 4.5% over the next five years. This growth rate is more than triple the projected 1.3% for in-store grocery sales, highlighting a significant consumer shift toward the convenience of online grocery shopping.

Conclusion

The food industry is experiencing a transformative shift toward e-commerce, driven by the increasing demand for convenience and the evolving preferences of consumers. With a projected revenue of $9.13 trillion in 2024 and a consistent rise in online grocery shopping, it’s clear that the sector is adapting to meet the needs of a growing population that values both quality and variety.

As food delivery services and online grocery platforms continue to expand, the landscape of how consumers access food is rapidly changing. Major players are innovating to enhance user experiences, ensuring that the food e-commerce sector not only remains relevant but also becomes a leader in the overall e-commerce market. With significant growth on the horizon, businesses in this space have ample opportunities to thrive.

Built To Make Your Delivery Business Much Stronger

The All-In-One eCommerce + Delivery Management Platform That Scales With Your Business.

Learn More: https://www.deliverybizpro.com/

Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich

The post The Ultimate Rise of E-Commerce in the Food Industry appeared first on Delivery Biz Pro - The Premier Home Delivery Software for Your Business Needs.

The fresh food delivery industry reached new heights during pandemic lockdowns, but as society settles into a new normal, many business owners struggle to maintain profits. Expanding into shipping is an attractive proposition to reach new customers, but it comes with unique risks and rewards.

Luckily for us, Skarsgard Farms’ savvy Operations Manager, Chelsea Smith, was kind enough to share her experiences so readers can plan accordingly before leaping into another vertical. We distilled her thoughts for this post, but the entire text, including diagrams, is available for Delivery Biz Pro users.

Before we get into the details, let’s cover several rewards and challenges of shipping perishables.

The Rewards

• Expanded Reach: Adding shipping to your fresh food delivery business allows you to tap into wider regional or national markets. Reach customers beyond your local area, potentially boosting your base and revenue.

• Convenience is King: Most consumers prefer, and even expect, doorstep delivery regardless of where they live. With shipping infrastructure in place, you can champion and market this convenience to your audience.

• Curated Experience: Take control of the variables to guarantee profit and mitigate risk. By limiting your offerings or bundling them together, you can rest assured each transaction is worthwhile.

• Brand Building: New markets mean fresh opportunities to network with regional influencers and brand advocates. Leverage new customers and local talent to drive sustained success for your fresh food business.

The Challenges

• Temperature Control: The foremost challenge is maintaining the integrity of your perishables during transit. Extreme weather conditions can wreak havoc, even with ice packs and insulated liners. Spikes in temperature during Summer make shipping a daunting task.

• Packaging Puzzles: Efficiently packing perishables for shipping is akin to a game of Tetris. Each product must be snugly fit together to avoid unnecessary air pockets that can hasten thawing. Proper packing necessitates careful planning and testing.

• Courier Confusion: Choosing the right courier makes all the difference. The choice should be region-specific. As Chelsea points out, UPS may excel in urban areas, while FedEx may excel in rural areas. DHL is not feasible for smaller vendors due to their high minimums.

• Climate Uncontrolled: Not all warehouses and sorting facilities are temperature-controlled. Every second your order spends waiting to be loaded or unloaded is critical. During the warmer months, a van’s cargo space can be significantly hotter than outside.

Before committing to sending orders near or far, you need to consider all the variables.

1. Inconsistency and Regional Importance: Shipping perishable items can be inconsistent, and the region to which products are shipped is crucial. Extreme weather conditions, such as heatwaves, can disrupt shipping operations. Be prepared to pause shipped orders during the Summer.

2. Frozen and Shelf-Stable Products: Frozen and shelf-stable products are the easiest to ship safely. Use insulated liners or styrofoam boxes with dry ice or ice packs. Note that shipping with dry ice can be more complicated due to specific regulations and expenses.

3. Proper Handling Instructions: When using dry ice, include an information sheet with instructions for handling and disposing of it, along with safety precautions. Compliance with government regulations is essential. The couriers and customers must be aware of what they handle.

4. Ice Pack Recommendations: Use ice packs equivalent to 50% of the weight of the shipped products. This can increase shipping costs dramatically when shipping frozen and refrigerated foods. Those striving for green operations should consider the waste generated with disposable ice packs.

5. Curated Boxes: Curated boxes with tightly packed contents are more effective for maintaining temperature control. Avoid leaving too much air space, which can lead to quicker thawing of ice packs. Bundling products can be a great way to control your margins and save customers time.

6. Best Courier Service: The choice of courier service depends on the destination region. UPS and FedEx may have different reliability levels in urban and rural areas. DHL may be unsuitable for small vendors due to high minimum shipment requirements. Spend time learning the strengths and weaknesses of each option.

7. Efficient Packing: Efficiently packing shipping orders is a significant challenge. The tighter the fit, the cooler it will stay. Multiple test shipments are essential to ensure that products arrive in good condition. These tests will pay for themselves almost immediately once you are up and running.

8. Label Placement: Proper placement of shipping labels is crucial, as drivers are trained to load boxes label side up. Consider using labels or stickers to indicate perishable content, the need for immediate refrigeration, or fragility. Remember not to cover addresses or barcodes with safety notifications.

9. Temperature Control in Warehouses: Be aware that shipping facilities like FedEx and UPS warehouses may not be temperature-controlled. This can affect the quality and condition of perishable items. Monitor time spent between destinations using the provided tracking number.

10. Delivery Times: Delivery times are not guaranteed, and products may spend more time outside of refrigeration than expected, which can impact the quality of the products upon arrival. Depending on the destination, carefully consider the choice of courier and packing materials.

11. Consider Costs: Consider the additional costs of packaging, coolants, specialty labels, and labor when determining shipping fees. Overnight shipping may not be economically viable for some businesses. Chelsea suggests flat rates that cover shipping costs to the furthest edge of a zone. Leftover postage fees from the closer locations offset extra expenses from the further destinations.

Conclusion

Expanding your fresh food delivery business to include shipping is a promising avenue for growth, but it has its challenges, as highlighted above. It demands careful planning, attention to detail, and compliance with regulations. However, the potential rewards, such as market expansion and diversified revenue streams, can make the effort worthwhile. By using the insights provided in this post, you can navigate the complexities and unlock the full potential of your fresh food business.

Thanks for reading. Like and leave a comment below if you would like to share your own experiences with shipping perishable products.

Remember, if you are a Delivery Biz Pro customer, you can request a full copy of Skarsgard Farms’ written experiences.

Built To Make Your Delivery Business Much Stronger

The All-In-One eCommerce + Delivery Management Platform That Scales With Your Business.

Learn More: https://www.deliverybizpro.com/

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko via Pexel

The post 11 Essentials to Shipping Food: How to Reach New Markets and Keep Customers Happy appeared first on Delivery Biz Pro - The Premier Home Delivery Software for Your Business Needs.

There are many reasons for this, including inaccurate orders and delivery delays. Let’s discuss how you can squash food waste and increase your margins—all with tools included with Delivery Biz Pro’s eCommerce subscription delivery platform.    

Real-Time Inventory Management

The stock of one of your products can change quickly and frequently, depending on the season, weather, economic conditions, a promotion and more. Trying to manage all of these variables is next to impossible without a robust software solution to help you see what’s going on. 

Delivery Biz Pro can help you track inventory in real-time, so you aren’t caught off guard if an unexpected boost in sales depletes your stock. It can also be used to create purchase orders, or you can give your suppliers the power to manage their own inventory and create purchase orders — taking one more task off of your plate. 

Ultimate Order Accuracy

If a customer makes an order but it’s not fulfilled properly or if there’s a communication breakdown somewhere between the customer and the supplier, it can lead to an inaccurate order and wasted food. Failing to send written confirmation of the order placed, not notifying customers of the estimated time of delivery, and not confirming order address are all things that can contribute to failed deliveries. Here’s how to keep customers updated, accurately: 

Order Change Alerts

Consumers who are ordering their food online want to be able to experience the same kind of flexibility they have when ordering in person. Therefore, you need to be prepared and ready to make last-minute changes. Even if your kitchen can make the requested modification, don’t forget to alert your driver. With our convenient mobile app, you can send driver text messages, modify delivery routes, and even schedule a new pickup location with the click of a button. 

Automatic Order Confirmations

Communicate with your customers automatically during the entire order process and send them an estimated time of arrival. Sometimes customers make mistakes when placing a food order, but now both you and your customer will be on the same page when you use our software to send instant notices of order confirmation. 

Delivery Reminder Emails

Go one step beyond just sending an order confirmation and send delivery reminders to individual customers. This will reconfirm the items they will be receiving and the time or day they can expect their delivery to arrive. When it comes to successful deliveries, communication is key and Delivery Biz Pro has multiple tools to help you do just that. 

Product Management

Sometimes you can deliver the requested items but the way in which the products are received can result in a poor customer experience. For instance, packing hot and cold items together can make for an unpleasant meal. With Delivery Biz Pro, our software allows you to designate certain items to be packed separately from others so salads stay crisp and soups stay hot. 

Improve Delivery Times

When you’re in the business of delivering perishable products, time is of the essence. Whether you’re trying to get chilled meal kits or hot dinners to their destination quickly, improving delivery times is a common KPI for many delivery businesses. One of the easiest ways to do this is to focus on route optimization and enhance communication with your drivers. 

Delivery Biz Pro gives you a simple, organized way to show what needs to be dropped off, to whom, and at what location. Drivers are given the most efficient route for their deliveries including maps with turn by turn directions. Need to override the system to make a priority delivery? No problem — simply use the manual feature to rearrange stops. 

Improve Margin and Grow Your Business With Delivery Biz Pro

Food waste can eat away at a restaurant’s profit margin, and for those in the business of food delivery, it’s no different. Don’t let inaccurate orders, late deliveries, and miscommunication contribute to food waste and a negative margin — enlist the help of customer-focused eCommerce delivery software. Delivery Biz Pro accomplishes all of this, plus so much more. Give us a call or fill out our online form to request your free demo today. 

Photo by Maarten van den Heuvel from Pexels

The post Three Ways Delivery Businesses Can Reduce the Cost of Food Waste appeared first on Delivery Biz Pro - The Premier Home Delivery Software for Your Business Needs.

Having an eCommerce store is the first step for most companies, but relying on a website alone and is not enough. If you’re ready to take your business to new heights, every delivery business should be taking full advantage of the opportunities provided by an eCommerce store by connecting it to customizable delivery management software like that from Delivery Biz Pro. Keep reading to learn more.

Increase Repeat Orders

One big advantage of having an eCommerce store is being able to track what your customers buy. This not only helps with inventory management, but also powers your marketing to current customers. Take order tracking a step further by analyzing customer buying habits and then offering suggestions based on those habits. For instance, when you connect Delivery Biz Pro to your eCommerce site, you can determine what products your customers buy and when they buy them and then use that information to send an alert reminding them that it’s time to buy.

A Store Set Up For Subscriptions 

We have been building eCommerce websites specifically for delivery businesses since 2007. As you may know, recurring home delivery businesses won’t work well with just any website store builder. If you went that route, with a generic website store builder, you’d have to integrate it with other new software and stitch these solutions together. In contrast, we provide you with one integrated, out-of-the-box solution for subscription delivery, eliminating any work or cost of patching separate solutions together, and informed by 13 years of experience creating customized subscription delivery eCommerce stores. 

Track Sales, Returns, and Deposits In Real-Time

With only a standalone eCommerce store, you may be able get detailed information related to sales and returns, but it takes time to process. A return can take days to show up in the system and this lag time can create big problems when you’re trying to manage inventory. But with a store synced with delivery software, your sales, returns, and bottle deposits are updated in real-time as your drivers make changes on the road. Our software can be accessed through a mobile app that allows your delivery drivers to manage transactions with the click of a button. Now if a driver has to correct an invoice, the change will be reflected online, immediately. 

 How To Make It Happen

We understand that setting up and running an online store is a big step for many small businesses, but it’s the only way to reach a bigger audience. If you really want your business to reach its full potential, pair it with the delivery software from Delivery Biz Pro. Getting started is easy. We’ll provide the support you need to integrate it with your current business processes and payments system so you can be up and running in no time. You’ll be able to create sales reports, inventory reports, and customer-specific reports that give you the data you need to analyze your business and make informed decisions.  

If you’re looking for tools that can help you grow your subscription delivery business, contact a member of our team. 

The post Why Your Subscription Delivery Business Needs Integrated Delivery Software appeared first on Delivery Biz Pro - The Premier Home Delivery Software for Your Business Needs.

Since 1998, Delivery Biz Pro has provided food delivery companies like yours with an eCommerce marketplace integrated with delivery software — optimizing deliveries by analyzing and improving upon current delivery data. Our delivery management software is specially designed to help your business manage inventories, track sales, and eliminate any inefficiencies that your business might be experiencing. According to Upserve Restaurant Insider, 33% of American consumers saying that they would be willing to pay a higher fee for faster delivery services, it is more important now than ever to optimize your delivery services and business infrastructure. 

The Challenge: Moving Consumers to Buy Produce Online

Food delivery is a valuable service that makes life easier, however, consumers have yet to completely make the switch from visiting the grocery store to visiting an online delivery marketplace. Approximately 96% of U.S. consumers still primarily shop for their groceries in the store — even though they can have those same groceries delivered to their doorstep using an online delivery service. 

One reason for the hesitancy to switch to online delivery is the challenge for some companies to be able to live up to consumers’ expectations. For instance, consumers assume that their order will be delivered quickly and accurately and don’t want to have their choices limited just because they are ordering online. They also expect to receive personalized communication throughout their buying experience — something that can be difficult to do, especially as a business starts to experience significant growth.

At Delivery Biz Pro, we have developed a delivery management system that can allow your business to get the competitive edge it needs to entice consumers to buy their produce online instead of going to a brick-and-mortar store. Learn more about our innovative delivery management and tracking software today. 

The Solution: Online Store That Optimizes For Each Customer’s Needs — eCommerce Specifically Built For Delivery

Delivery Biz Pro, our eCommerce delivery marketplace and software, is the tool that your business needs to efficiently track, sell, and deliver products. Check out this article to learn how one organic food delivery service, Washington Green Grocer, benefited from our software.

For businesses like WGG, one of the biggest challenges can be retaining customers and increasing order sizes. With Delivery Biz Pro, you can migrate all your past customer data into the system and get a customized online store that makes signup, ordering, and repeat ordering, so much easier. It also offers inventory management and route optimization so orders get out faster. Plus, you can increase customer retention with DBP’s automated email marketing, which uses order data to send just the right promotional email to the right customer at the right time. 

Working With Delivery Biz Pro

Do you currently have a produce delivery business? Contact us today to speak with our team about the power of all-in-one eCommerce and Delivery software. 

The post eCommerce Tools To Help Deliver & Track Your Produce appeared first on Delivery Biz Pro - The Premier Home Delivery Software for Your Business Needs.